


House of Mirth

by stuckonapuzzle



Category: Arctic Monkeys, British Singers RPF, Indie Music RPF, Last Shadow Puppets, Miles Kane - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1930s, Alternate Universe - Hotel, Concierge!Alex, Fluff, I think?, M/M, Saxplayer!Miles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-08-13
Packaged: 2019-06-09 22:38:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15277689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stuckonapuzzle/pseuds/stuckonapuzzle
Summary: Miles is a new band member at a fancy hotel where Alex is a seasoned concierge. And it's the 30's, just 'cause.





	1. Part I

        As Miles walked up the stairs to the luxurious hotel he couldn’t help but feel small, standing there next to such grandiose architecture. He’d been used to playing small dirty clubs well into the night all around town and wasn’t quite sure how he’d scored such a great job working as a band member in one of the most prestigious hotels in the city. With his sax packed in one hand and his suitcase in the other, he greeted the doormen standing outside as he made his way in.

        Once inside, he set his suitcase on the floor and took a moment to take in the amount of information contained in the entrance hall. Marble floors and walls, ample space, na enormous chandelier hanging high above and intricate rugs displayed below, polished wood and shiny metal, you could practically see your reflection in almost every surface. As fashionable as he liked to fancy himself, he suddenly felt incredibly ill-dressed and unprepared for whatever was ahead.

        As he was admiring the place a woman runs down the stairs crying, her long dress flowing behind her and not long after a gentleman in a very nicely tailored suit, followed by what seemed to be a hotel employee, sighing loudly after them. He turned to see them run out the door but was interrupted by another man in a uniform.

        “I suppose you must be Mr. Kane, the new band member” said the large figure of the man who Miles guessed must be someone of a higher importance in the hierachy of the hotel staff.

        Miles drew his attention away from the scene going on outside the building and focused on what he was being asked.

        “Yes, yes, that’d be me!”

        “Wonderful! I’m Mr. Smith. The head concierge at this hotel. Would you mind coming with me as I show you around? You may leave your belongings here. Mr Turner will take them to your chambers once he’s done dealing with the patrons outside” before he'd even finished his sentece, he set off on his way to show Miles his new workplace.

        Taken aback by Mr. Smith’s hectic pace Miles hesitated before setting his suitcases down and hurried to follow the man who seemed incredibly fast for someone of a heavier build.

        “I apologise if I seem in a hurry. Time moves faster here. You might want to get used to it. Sometimes there seems not to be enough hours in the day for everything to be done”

        Miles simply followed the man as well as he could without lagging behind and reduced his responses to merely agreeing with whatever he said.

        “Our patrons are some of the wealthiest and most famous people in the country and beyond, the lady you just saw throw a fit outside, for example, is a Danish princess. We are meant to be ready to appease to all of their wishes and must ensure they receive only the best at all times”

        Miles wasn’t wrong in suddenly feeling apprehensive and inadequate after all. He hoped to be able to do his job as best he could, get his wages and deal with these people as little as possible. He wasn't really familiar with working for people so far above him on the social ladder and expected to encouter as few difficulties as possible. Their first stop seemed to be arriving once Mr. Smith slowed down his steps slighty and began talking again.

        “This is the restaurant, all meals are served here, unless asked to be delivered directly to the room. At times you might be required to play here.”

        This room was just as breathtakingly beautiful as the lobby and the corridors they'd been walking through in the hotel and Miles wished he could eat in a place like this at least once in his life, although for the time being playing here would have to be enough. Before he could fantasize any longer Mr Smith had started walking again. It didn't take too long until they reached their next stop.

        “And this is the kitchen, you will eat your meals here along with the staff. This is one of, if not the busiest, rooms in the entire hotel, so I’d advise you to not come in and interrupt the staff at any other time apart from when the meals are being served”

        As Miles looked around, he caught some of the staff smile his way, too occupied to make proper introductions while preparing the pastries for what he supposed would be the afternoon tea.

        “And this is the ballroom, most of your work shall take place here. You shall not drink from the cocktail bar and are not allowed to smoke in here during work hours.”

        The ballroom was yet again beautifully decorated and spacious, certainly the biggest venue he'd played so far. Miles felt instantly excited to play there, despite all the restrictions.

        “Remember that your job is simply to entertain the guests with music, your presence should be otherwise unrecognisable” Miles nodded, suddenly aware once again just where he was and who he was working for. Mr Smith started walking once again and Miles was quick to follow him not wanting to seem uninterested.

        “There are of course many other rooms in this hotel, a casino, indoor swimming pools, hairdressers saloons, spas and such but these are the ones pertaining your duties and all of those amenities are of course for the exclusive use of the patrons.” Curiosity almost got the best of Miles, but he stopped himself before asking any improper questions.

        “Lastly, let me show to your chambers.”

        Relieved to learn his tour was coming to and end Miles couldn’t help but look forward to finally parting with Mr. Smith and having some alone time to take it all in.

        “Here’s your key, you’ll have some time to rest, but should be called into service later tonight, you will meet the other musicians and rehearse with them then, when the time to present comes you should change into the tuxedo inside the wardrobe, is everything clear Mr. Kane?” Miles nodded his head at these last bits of information.

        “Yes, thank you very much for showing me the hotel, Mr Smith.” Miles said trying his hardest to remain cordial for a few more seconds, tipping his hat and everything before he could unwind, although he hadn’t even began working he already felt tired as if he’d done a full days’ worth of heavy labour.

        “Well, then, if you allow me, I’ll return to my office, and I hope to see you there tomorrow so we can talk wages, but for now, excuse me.” said Mr Smith and bowed before closing the door and as soon as Miles was alone in his room, he released a tire sigh adn fell onto the small bed he would call his from now on. He looked to his side and realised that just as Mr. Smith had said there were his belongings as if in a magic trick, set right beside his bed. He hoped he’d get a chance to talk to the man who’d brought them in as he was dying to interact with any other member of staff apart from Mr. Smith. He'd had quite enough interaction with him to last a while.

        Before Miles could change or unpack or go explore and meet his future colleagues or anything he caught himself falling fast asleep to a dreamless slumber.

-

        It was with a knock on his door that Miles awoke. He opened his eyes with a startle and could not remember where he was or who might be knocking or why. Still he got up, tried to straighten his clothes as best he could and settle his hat back on his head before opening the door.

        “Hello, you must be the new musician” said the smiling figure of a young man with gentle waves framing his face “I’m Nicolas O’Malley, the bass player, I was told to call on you and introduce you to the rest of the band, do you want some time to get ready? Did I arrive at a bad time?" He went from smiling to slighty worried, but Miles was quick to reassure he had not disturbed him too greatly.

        “No, no! It’s fine, I was just taking a nap, but I’m fine, we can go now, I'll change later.” Miles closed the door to his room and followed Nicolas.

        “Oh, good. I’ve presented myself but still don’t know your name.”

        “Sorry! I’m Miles, Miles Kane.”

        “And what do you play Mr. Kane?”

        “The saxophone… You can just call me Miles.”

        Nicolas smiled at the friendly gesture and they both walked along the path Miles was already familiar with by now, though he still let Nicolas lead the way. They arrived at the ballroom, which was now looking a bit different from when Miles had visited it earlier in the day. On the small stage on the back of the room now there were a few people talking and tuning their instruments. Noise reverberated on the tall walls and filled the room giving it a presence much different to the one Miles had witnessed.

        “Fellas!” Nicolas shouted in an attempt to draw in the attention from the group of men “Fellas!” he said once again and the men put their intruments down and stopped talking to look in his direction. “I’d just like to introduce our new band member, Mr. Miles Kane, he’ll be playing the saxophone.”

        Miles went around greeting and learning the names and instruments of each band member as well as being told exactly how and when they rehearsed, what they played and what was a usual night of work like and not much longer they were already starting to play. Once Miles got his lips around the mouthpiece of his saxophone and the band started to play he completely lost himself in the music, forgetting all his anxieties and apprehensions he’d felt earlier and just did what he loved most.

        They had a little intermission between rehearsing and the moment they’d play for the guests so that they could eat. Since it was dinner time and extremely busy in the kitchen when they arrived their food was set aside in a less troubled corner of the room where they sat and ate until it was time to reenter the ballroom and entertain the guests.

        Miles was buzzing all over with excitment, he hardly ate anything, wanting to hurry up and get on stage and once they started playing the night seemed both never-ending and far too shortall at once. The short hair of women contrasted with their long dresses sas they wayed from side to side, led by their pairs and accompanied by the murmur of people talking and drinking the night away. Miles had worked himself up to such an excited state that once the last person left the room after hours of dancing, and they were allowed to leave he could barely believe it was all over. He felt as if he could go on till sunrise.

        He only realized how tired he still was once he’d reached his room and could barely muster the drive to get out of his day clothes and get into bed. And still, once he’d finally laid his head on the pillow he felt so awake he thought he might not sleep a wink after all. He couldn’t quite believe he was in a way living his dream. Having a steady place where he could always play instead of jumping from club to club and from town to town. His bandmates all seemed like good people and even the food wasn’t so bad. His room was a bit dingy and crammed but even then, it was still better than some of the places he’d lived in and was a roof over one’s head after all. He felt as if he had his career made, at least for now, and couldn’t wait to write home to his mum about it all.

-

        The next day Miles woke up and headed straight to the showers, desperately wanting to freshen up. Only when he came back into his room did he realise it was already well past lunch time. He hesitated about entering the kitchen after his talk with Mr. Smith but his stomach growled loudly and decided to do it anyway.

        The kitchen was busy, as always, but not terribly. He imagined he must look like a lost child who walked into the wrong room, looking around not knowing what to do until one of the chefs came to talk to him.

        “Hello, you’re the new band member who came in here yesterday, right? I’m Matt Helders, the chief cook” the man held out his hand for Miles to shake and so he did.

        “Yes, pleasure to meet you, I’m Miles Kane”

        “Hope you had a good first day” 

        “Yeah, it was pretty good” Miles hid some of his excitment not to seem too eager.

        “Hope Mr Smith didn’t scare you too much, he’s quite the mardy bum.”

        “He did scare me a bit, I guess.” he admitted.

        “Don’t worry too much about whatever he said. We find our ways to go around some of his rules without him ever finding out.” Matt said with a cheeky grin.

        He kept on sharing information about the hotel that Mr. Smith completely disregarded when showing Miles around, when they were interrupted by another member of staff coming to ask something off Matt.

        “Matt, are those scones ready? I think the lady in 409 is starting to have a nervous breakdown about them.”

        “Yes, sorry, I think Alexandra has finished them. I was just telling the new band member about our little secrets.”

        “His second day and you’re already taking him down the wrong path. Give him a little time to settle in at least!” said the man Miles recognised from when he arrived at the hotel, running after the crying princess.

        “Don’t want him getting all anxious because of Mr. Smith. Although you’d probably be the best one to really tell him the nitty gritty that goes on in here, Alex here knows each corner of this hotel and its guests better than anyone else.”

        “I suppose I could, but right now I'm really rather worried about those scones.” the man said bringing the conversation back to his point of interest.

        “There you go” a petite blond girl came barging into their talk with a big plate of scones.

        “Thank you, Ms Saviour, and I’m sorry for interrupting your luncheon Mr…”

        “Miles Kane”    

        “Sorry for interrupting Mr Miles kane, if it’d really interest you, I could show you more of the hotel, backstage it’s really not as glamorous as it seems.” Alex said smiling.

        “I’d love that.” Miles returned the smile.

        Miles couldn’t quite pin down what it was about Alex, but the man intrigued him greatly and he couldn’t wait to spend some more time with him. Putting these thoughts aside he remembered he had a meeting with Mr. Smith this afternoon and hurried to find him once he was done eating.

-

        Quite pleased with how the meeting turned out and hoping that now he could go quite some time without having to deal with Mr. Smith, Miles went back to his room and wrote a lengthy letter to his mum back in Liverpool, telling her all about his new adventure. Along with promises of writing again soon.

        The night settled in and it was time for the band to play once again. Somewhat knowing what to expect, Miles felt more at ease this time round and at some point, he could swear he spotted Alex’s face in the crowd, though he did not look as if he was amidst a job, but rather enjoying the performance and Miles suddenly felt an unexplicable wave of shiness run through his whole body. 

-

        Another day and by now Miles was losing the intial nervousness Mr Smith had instilled in him. After lunch he hid outside for a bit, where the rubbish bins stood to have a smoke, instead of fogging up his tiny room completetly along with all his belongings in there. And when he least expected it, he noticed a uniform he was already quite well acquainted with coming through the door.

        “It seems you found one of my spots without the need of my help even” Alex said once he noticed Miles’ form behind the door.

        “Oh… It was by pure accident.” Miles said honestly, he’d just been snooping around the kitchen by himself, exactly as Mr. Smith had told him not to do and wondered where this door would lead him to.

        “Some might call it fate.” Alex teased. Miles smiled and handed him his cigarette case in an offer.

        “Thank you” Alex said as he picked one up and Miles struck a match and brought it up to light the cigarette resting on his lips. They smoke in silence for a while. Alex’s the first to talk again.

        “Any other hideaways you found out?”

        “No…” Miles puffed on his fag.

        “You still have quite some time before work am I right?”

        “Yeah…” he hoped this was going where he thought it was.

        “Would you like to come with me on a little expedition?” one could say Alex seemed maybe a little too excited about the prospect of showing the corridors he walked, and sometimes ran, day and night, a thousand times for the past few years of his life, but really, as much as he loved his job, Alex was just looking for an excuse to spend more time with his newest acquaintance and hoping to get to know some more of him in the process.

        “Sure” Miles answered while putting out his cigarette.

        Alex put out his cigarette as well and opened the door letting Miles enter before him, but it wasn't too long until Miles found himself tailing behind someone once again. 

        Once inside the staff  elevator Alex started introducing the hotel as well as its guests and stories a little further than what he'd heard so far.

        “Not everyone of our guests come here for parties or weddings or to see famous singers from across the pond, although we do see a lot of the same faces come in and out time and again, some we get to see all year round, they live here, even if capable to live where else, not only for the luxury. Sure, they enjoy the taste of the best food, to sleep in the best linen and have all these people and amenities at their disposition at all times. But most of all, those who choose to live here enjoy being away from their “real” homes. Many have gone bankrupt and come back, some haven't, many are renegades, living on the outskirts of society even when disposing of so much money. You’ve got it all here.” they arrive at a floor and get out of the elevator.

        “You might want to keep your voice down when walking through these corridors, the walls have ears, you see.” he turns back to say.

        "Here Ms. Arlington‘s staying," he says pointing to a door as they step carefully on the carpet of the long corridor, "she’s one of our usual guests, has a bit of a bridge addiction some might say, every now and again she falls into debt, and unbeknownst to most, she seems to find the money to pay it back, and so starts playing again. She’s also quite fond of a drink and every now and again puts on quite a scene at the casino.”

        “And here stays Mr. Townsend, the son of a banker, he’s still pretty young, but has already divorced his wife. He brings a plethora of lovers here without a care in the world, we’ve lost count of how many are they, sometimes they come in groups, it’s been said he has impregnated quite of few of them as well and you wouldn’t believe the mess they leave behind, although the chambermaids always seem to find something or other of interest in there afterwards.”

        Moving onto another floor Alex and Miles continued their explloration of the lives of the rich and famous "Mr. Whittaker, comes here now and again, he’s rather subject to mood swings, one minute he’s on top of the world giving you tips your eyes won’t believe and the next he won’t leave his room for four days, not even bothering to call up room service to bring him his meals. Sometimes he doesn’t come back for months on end and then when you least expect it, he throws a big party and invites half the town. And there's always losts of stories to talk about afterwards.” 

        "Mrs. Ashby‘s been said to be a nymph of the pave, who got lucky enough to marry a very rich gentleman who then mysteriously passed away, you can guess what they say about her, I assume. She owns some of the most extravagant jewellery and dresses you’ll ever see and you can almost certainly find her at the hairdresser's at almost any time. You’ll never find a hair out of place on her head, unless you get to come into her room at unfortunate times as I do, then you see all sorts of unruly things." 

        "And last but not least here lives someone who shall not be named, a member of the royal family who enjoys spending taxpayers money very much as well as spreading venereal diseases to poor young ladies who don’t know better and get caught in his trap of convincing them he’ll marry them." It was already starting to get late so they made their way back to the elevator where Alex shared a last bit of secret information Mr Smith would never talk or know about before they needed to get back to work.

        "As Matt was telling you the other day, If cautious enough, every now and again we can sneak around and get a look of what it’s like on the other side of the social ladder. Matt will sometimes prepare some spare pastries for us. Jamie, the bartender, you'll probably have seen him from the stage when playing, will spare us some liquor and whatnot and even the dealers at the casino let us bet now and again. The chambermaids are the ones who really find the most exciting stuff though, they are also the ones who get to take naps on the fancy beds and use their fancy toilets every now and again. But all can be arranged" He said with a wink.

        "And believe me I haven't even scratched the surface when it comes to the tales that go down here, but you, yourself will still get to see some interesting scenes down at the ballroom once you’ve been here long enough, and get some firsthand experience of working at a luxury hotel, especially once we get one of them famous American singers coming in and you’ll get to experience everything from the floor instead of on the stage. I think there might be one coming soon... Either way I’ve probably held you up for long enough, and it's simply impossible to show it all in one afternoon. It's probably nearing time for rehearsal and you still got your own clothes on. But don't worry, we'll cotinue another day." As much as Miles didn't want to leave, he knew Alex was right. 

        Only once he was on his way to his room to change did he realise just how long he must’ve been in the company of the other man. Yet he felt like they could go on much longer, Alex could show him every single room in the entire hotel and he’s still go along, listening to all the stories he'd gathered from working there so long. 

        Ready to go and play for his third night Miles felt different this time. His mind kept wandering back to memories of the moments he spent with Alex earlier in the day. The way he talked about the guests and their stories, how his voice seemed to have a hypnotising effect on him, making him want to hear Alex for as long as possible and rushing time from hours to seconds, as well as all the little mannerisms that made him somehow so endearing, how he brushed his hair back with his hands, the sudden bursts of shiness that left him staring at the floor and how every now and again he seemed to forget what he was going on about. Miles just felt incredibly drawn to the other man. And when he least expected it mid-presentation, there he saw him, at the back once again, staying for a few minutes before leaving. Miles couldn’t wait for the opportunity to spend more time with him again.


	2. Part II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex goes missing for a while, but all is good.

        The next few days Miles and Alex met up whenever possible even if for short periods of time so Miles could get to know the other rooms in the hotel. He now knew just exactly where the indoor swimming pools, the billiards table tennis,  the casino and the hairdresser’s salon were and just who worked there. The place was beginning to feel more and more like home, and his colleagues like friends.

        As was becoming usual for Miles, he went directly to the front desk after lunch in search for a certain man in a uniform he was getting well used to seeing everyday for his ongoing tour of his new workplace. Meeting with Alex at some time in the day had slipped easily into his routine. He simply couldn't get  enough of his company as fascinating as the hotel and its stories were, Alex’s presence just made it all the better. But for maybe the first time since he’d began working there, Alex didn’t stand in his usual place, instead there behind the counter stood a young woman he’d seen around a few times, but never really talked to.

       Although he considered asking her where Alex was, patrons started arriving and she occupied herself with them. Miles then thought about meeting his bandmates, only to remember many of them had families and lived somewhere else, coming to the hotel only at night for work. He didn’t even ponder entering the kitchen, knowing Matt would be busy as usual.

        Feeling lost and uncertain about what he should do or where he could go again for the first time since he arrived, he decided to head outside for a smoke in the same place as last time. Hoping he'd maybe be lucky enough to have Alex unexpectedly come through the same door twice. Although he had no such luck.

       The time to play came and Miles mustered all his energy to give his best, hoping that getting on stage would energise him, after a day that seemed so long he couldn’t see the end of it. And although playing did take his mind elsewhere for the duration of the night, he still couldn’t help but notice that not once did he see Alex’s face in the crowd.

       Once the very last patrons left stumbling their ways drunkenly to their rooms, and the band left longing to go back to their homes, Miles went back to the front desk, hoping Alex would magically appear there after a long day of being absent. But the only person standing there was the young lady from earlier.

       Tired and defeated, he went back to his room and fell wearily onto the bed that seemed incredibly uncomfortable that night.

-

        The next day, Miles woke up earlier than usual and actually managed to join the staff for breakfast. And when the opportunity arrived he asked Matt if he knew where Alex could have been the day before, but all he could offer was a “He’s probably busy running errands, haven’t they told you? Were getting a visitor next week, some big shot singer from the US, she’s going to be performing here in a couple of days.”  

       Miles remembered Alex mentioning something about that, but hadn’t really paid it any mind, not expecting it to change the dynamic they’d worked up to the past days. And as much as he wished he had Alex for company, he worried no longer about his disappearance.

        That night during rehearsal Mr Smith brought the news to the band that Billie Holiday would be performing at the hotel on the next Friday and announced that they would play in the restaurant during diner instead that night and would then be dismissed until the next day.

-

        It took an absolute eternity for Friday to arrive. Each day dragged on until the night as Miles could only but catch glimpses of Alex during the day. And even then, there was no time for words to be exchanged.

        Eventually the big day had come. Billie Holiday arrived, at the hotel all you could hear was how much of a sweetheart and how beautiful she was, how her very presence seemed to change the chemistry in the air and make it lighter. Miles on the other hand, couldn't wait to get a night off, and see a performance on top of that. But most importantly he was over the moon with the knowledge that he’d get to spend time with Alex again.

-

        The time had come, all was ready, the band was tuning their instruments and the performance was about to start. Alex had done his very best to ensure Billie had a pleasant stay at the hotel and now was his time to simmer down and enjoy the rest of the night. Miles had played at the restaurant and left as soon as possible to join the ballroom where all the guests were converging to.

        The ballroom was fuller than he'd ever seen it. And he couldn't possibly bring himself to find Alex in the sea of talking heads. Thinking he might as well get himself a drink he made his way to the bar where Jamie seemed busier than usual, but he still took the time to acknowledge Miles’ arrival.

        “I see you lucky bastard has got the night off” he said stopping to shake a drink in his hands.

        “I did play actually. But got off early.” Miles tried to argument in his defense.

        “Same difference.” Jamie said as he served the drink to a guest.

        “Have you seen Alex?” Miles addressed what he really wanted to know all day.

        “Not yet, but he should show up soon. I think the show's about to start. Want me to fix you a drink?”

        “Yeah, sure”

        Miles sat at the bar talking to Jamie and rapidly draining his beverage when he saw Alex make his way through the crowd alongside Nick.

        “I see you’re drinking already. Be a pal and fix me and Nick one too Jamie.” Miles couldn’t tell if it was all in his head, but Alex seemed excited to find him.

        Jamie put his hands to work and Alex took the opportunity to address Miles while waiting for his drink.

        “Sorry for vanishing this past week without notice. Things just got really hectic, really quickly and I had to be out most of the day. I’ll make it up to you though.” Alex apologised sincerely.

        Miles had missed him dearly and only cared to have him back, already forgetting the long lonely days he had spent.

        Billie soon walked onto the stage, greeting the audience and smiling. It didn't take long then until the band started to play.

        Alex begins moving in place as the music fills the room. “Let’s move to the center of the room.” He says, wanting to get into a more comfortable position to dance.

        “Not much of a dancer.” Nick admits.

        “Well, this might just be the song for you. It's called ‘he ain't got rhythm’” Miles teases him.

        “You’ll join me, won’t you, Miles?”

        “Sure. Wouldn’t miss this chance for the world.” he follows Alex as he gets lost amidst the crowd leaving Nick and Jamie behind at the bar.

        “I’m not much of a dancer either, if I’m honest” Miles confesses as they stop at a spot that seemed as good as any in the room brimful of people.

        “You don’t need to be Fred Astaire, it’s just about having fun. No one’s looking really. We’re all dead hoofers in here” Alex said as he took Miles’ hands to encourage him to start moving to the music.

        Once they started, they only stop dancing shortly to come back to the bar for new drinks but soon continue until their feets are sore. Alex leans into Miles’ ear.

        “Kinda feel like getting away for a bit. Care to join me?”

        Already drunk and needing no further encouraging he follows Alex out of the mob and recognises he’s taking him in the direction of the elevators. The music sounds distant and when they step into the lift, Miles feels as if they'd entered a world of their own. He kinda wishes they had spent this entire time alone. They enter the lift and alex presses the floor where Miles knows one of the swimming pools is located at.

        “This wasn’t exactly the next place I was planning on showing you, but I’m pretty certain there won’t be anyone there now, which makes it the perfect occasion for us to snoop in.” They walk through the dimly lit hallways of the hotel.

        “I’m also in dire need of some leisure time after running all over town like a madman.”

        Although Miles had seen where the swimming pool was he hadn’t really spent much time there, and Alex kept on walking to a corner of the echoing room which Miles had not been to yet, picking up a couple of towels on the way.

        “Have you ever been to a sauna, Miles?”

        “I don’t think so…”

        “You’re gonna love it!” he starts undressing unexpectedly and Miles considers looking away, but Alex soon starts talking again, bringing Miles’ attention to his face, although he was still having a somewhat hard time not to acknowledge the actions going on below in his drunken haze. “Here, you gonna need one, unless you’d prefer being completely naked, but I don’t think that’s advisable.”

        Miles picks up the towel Alex handed him, meanwhile the other man was already down to his underwear, taking them off at what seemed an unnaturally sluggish pace for Miles, although it could be the effect of the alcohol changing his perception of time. He gets a short glimpse of Alex’s well defined and round behind before it’s covered with the towel he had picked up.

        Inside the door, there laid wooden covered walls as well as a container filled with large stones. The temperature was much hotter than what Miles anticipated, not really knowing what to expect. They sit down beside each other. And Miles tries to get comfortable so as to enjoy the new experience.

        “So, Miles, I’d like to know a bit more about you. What brought you here?”

        “Just looking for a change really. Growing up my dad was never around much, so I’ve always had to provide for my mum and me. I guessed I could maybe make more money here. At first I wasn’t really making that much progress, to be honest. Thought about going back a lot. Then I met this bloke who told me about this job, and here I am.” he stated simply.

        “I came here from the north as well, didn’t really fancy working in the steel factories of Sheffield, so I came down to try my luck at the hotel business. Not sure why, it just fascinated me, I guess.”

        “Ever thought of going back?"

        “Not really. And now my whole life is here, friends, job… Whenever I miss my parents I go up to visit them and every now and again they come down too.”

        Sharing some of their backstory felt natural and  they could feel themselves bonding in a deeper level than they had to so far.

        The heat starts getting to them, beads of sweat form on the surface of their skin and it gets harder and harder for Miles to keep a straight conversation having to face alex’s glistening torso right there beside of him, his long strands of hair sticking to his face, making the whole picture that more debauched. There falls a silence in between them and the air feels heavy. Alex is the one to break the silence.

        “C’mon, let’s take a dip in the pool!”

        He stands up and leaves before Miles could even register what he’d said. He hears the sound of a body splashing into water outside and when he comes out he sees the towel dropped on the floor and the form of alex swimming at the bottom of the pool. No longer hesitating, Miles too drops his towel and jumps in the pool.

        The first contact of his hot skin against the cold water of the pool sent shivers down his spine, but soon he felt invigorated by the shock, almost sobering up immediately.

        Once they were done swimming, dried and dressed again, the sun was nearly rising and the time had come to say their goodbyes and for each of them to go in the direction of their rooms, as much as they didn't want to part.

-

        After his usual morning routine, Miles goes to the front desk still in a daze after he night before, but to his surprise once again alex wasn’t there. This time he was pretty certain there could be no reason for his absence. Billie Holliday was leaving that afternoon and his duties should be reestablished to what they usually were.

        Trying to pay it no mind, Miles got on with his day, getting the feeling that Alex may have been up to something, which made him anticipate their next meeting even more.

        It wasn’t until he left the stage that night that he saw the man in uniform he had been looking for earlier. Just as Miles had been making his way to look for him, he came his way and immediately dragged him away giving no explanations.

        “Come with me”

        He takes them to the elevator, giving out no information about where they’re going or what they are doing. They reach the floor Alex had pressed and he still won’t say a thing as he guides Miles out of the lift.

        Alex then covers the musician’s eyes, and leads him along the hallway into a random room Miles had never been to before. He’d actually not entered any of the actual hotel rooms where the guests stayed yet, and didn’t even consider he’d ever do it. Alex opens the door and then removes his hands from Miles’ eyes.

        They are in the biggest room Miles may had ever seen in his life. It was messy, as if someone had stayed there, but still looked fancy and well decorated. If anything the untidy look of the place gave it a more real appearance.

        “This is the room Billie Holliday stayed in. I asked the girls not to clean it yet so I could show you what it’s like inside one of them.” he finally unraveled some of the mystery.

        “It’s stunning!” Miles walks around, trying to take it all in, jumping onto the matress on the four poster bed dramatically to try and get a real feel of what it’d be like staying at this place. “I could get used to this."

        “You need to become Britain’s greatest sax player first.”

        “Easy”

        “That confident in your abilities?”

        “I just haven’t been discovered yet”

        “A classic case of the struggling genius musician then”

        “I guess you could say so” Miles responded jokingly.

        “Don’t forget your dear friend when you get there”

        “Oh, you're coming along for sure”

        Alex strolled over to a trolley standing at the end of the bed with a bottle inside of an ice bucket as well as two glasses “I got Jamie to sneak us a bottle of champagne as well.” This surprised Miles in his lazy state, driving him to sit up on the bed.

        “What’s the occasion?”

        “Just thought I’d make you a little surprise. An apology for last week” he pops the bottle open, some of the liquid falling on the floor before drizzling into one of the glasses alex held in his hand.

        Miles picks up the glass from Alex’s hand, and it gets readily filled with the fizzy drink. He drank it with pleasure, savouring the taste of expensive champagne for the first time in his life.

        “I enjoyed dancing with you last night so much, I thought we might do it again.” Alex made his way to a wooden box sitting on top of a table on the corner and picked out a random vinyl to play on the gramophone.

        “C’mon, get up” Alex said coming back to the side of the bed and stretching his hands as an invitation.

        This time, apart from the obvious difference of them being alone in a hotel room, the music was slower, and the whole atmosphere just felt different, as if they had gone through an intimate change since the last night.

        Miles did as he was told, standing up and readily taking alex’s hand on his for a reprise of the night before. The experience felt unreal, just yesterday Miles had wished for this and here they were, living a make pretend moment he wished could last forever.

        The two of them stood in the middle of the room dancing much closer than they had, so close that Miles could look into Alex’s chocolate coloured eyes, smell his hair and feel his breath. He takes a moment to steal a glance at Alex’s lips.

        “You’re too good.”

        Alex felt suddenly shy and rested his head on Miles’ shoulder.

        “You deserve it”

        “Don’t know why you said you were a bad dancer. You move perfectly fine for me.”

        They stay like that for a while, not knowing who’d make the next move or if any would make it at all. Comfortable just to be in each other’s embrace, when they hear a knock on the door.

        Alex feels Miles tense up and reluctantly let’s go “It’s probably just Alexa coming to check we don’t stay longer than we should.”

        He opens the door and Miles sees the girl that sometimes replaced Alex’s spot at the front desk.

        “Sorry to interrupt.” She said through the opening in the door. “Just thought to inform you that the girls are coming  soon to clean up the room. Mr Smith’s coming for an inspection early in the morning.” Alex thanks her and closes the door.

        They finish the bottle of champagne while sitting on the balcony, underneath the moonlight. Alex’s the first to get up and go back into the room, triggering Miles to join him.

        “Well… It was fun while it lasted.” he takes the needle off of the vinyl on the gramophone.

        Miles didn’t know how he could ever thank him enough. This had been possibly the most special night of his life and he didn’t know what he‘d done to deserve it.

-

        “I don’t know how to thank you” he said as they stood outside the door of his room, infinitely smaller and simpler than the one they’d just been in.

        “No need to.  You’re great company, that’s enough“

        Once again he unknowingly stared at Alex’s lips and before he could think his actions through to check they were appropriate or not he was pulling the other man close to his body and linking their lips in a kiss that meant the world to Miles, since he couldn’t quite bring himself to put into words all that he wanted to say.

        Without letting go, he brought Alex into his room so he could close the door behind them, separating the two of them from the rest of the world.

        That night, they spent what was left of the day until dawn spooning closely on Miles’ tiny bed as if they were one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suck at endings.... 
> 
> Sorry about that.


End file.
